Fin Sighting At Narragansett Town Beach Temporarily Closes Water

NARRAGANSETT, RI – Town officials abruptly closed Narragansett Town Beach for 45 minutes Wednesday morning when lifeguards spotted a fin out in the whitewater that they could not immediately identify.

While such a sighting would suggest a potential presence of shark, which haven't been spotted in area waters in recent years, it turns out Wednesday's beach visitors were a much friendlier sort.

Two dolphins made their way to the beach Wednesday morning and spent a good share of the day in the area, Steve Wright, the director of Narragansett Parks and Recreation, told Patch on Thursday.

The two dolphins were identified by local fire officials who took a boat out into the whitewater and discovered that the fins seen by lifeguards were, in fact, a pair of playful mammals.

Wright said that he was alerted of the situation by beach manager Bill Eckert at around 8:45 a.m. and according to beach protocols, the water was cleared by lifeguards. After the dolphins were identified, however, beach-goers were allowed to return to the water.

Wright said while it is not known what drew the dolphins to the beach, he said water temperatures that hovered around 75 degrees may have played a role. While dolphins can be known to break away from their pod because of an injury or sickness, Wright said there’s no telling what drew Wednesday’s two visitors to area waters.

The two dolphins, who did not appear to be in any danger, have not been seen since Wednesday.

“It’s not common,” said Wright, who said a dolphin made its way to Narragansett Bay a couple of years ago. “I’ve been around long enough to know it’s not a common sight. That’s for sure.”

He added: “We’ll take it as another day at the beach.”